Realm
by IrisCarlyle
Summary: The Time War has ended, and the Doctor finds himself stuck on a Realm. With the help of Rumpelstiltskin, and some other fairy tale characters, will he ever be able to return to his Universe or will he be stuck with the Spinner for eternity?
1. Chapter 1

There was a rift in space. A small rift, only 10 feet by 12, but the Doctor took it. It was the only means of escape from the time war as everything else died. The TARDIS, whom had no final destination, bashed into the sides of the rift until the insides were banged up. The man on the inside was a lot like his box; a wound in his left side that should've been fatal had it hit anywhere else, and death soon approaching. He groaned in pain, withering on the ground. Time Lord blood spilled from him like great tendrils of snake. "Oh just start already!" He almost shouted in agony.

The insides of the box were on fire, but dare not burn him. Golden light soon poured from his mouth and limbs, and he began to change from the 9th time. A smile curled on his lips, glad to leave this body that reminded him of the war, and his face changed. Several moments later the new doctor lay on the bed of his box, sleeping. With a thud, the TARDIS stopped. And all was peaceful.

The Doctor opened his eyes and without looking at any device he knew three days had passed. His nose withered and he jumped up, feeling out of place in this new body. "Well..." he paused, mouth curling around the new teeth. He shook his head, approaching towards the door. Where did his box end up?

He was in a meadow with lilies and irises throughout the fresh spring beauty of it. There was a small creek running near his feet and birds hummed, frogs croaked, and bugs zoomed around. He almost thought this was Earth.

It looked like it, smelled like it, felt like it, everything about it was Earth. But there was a hum in the air that wasn't like anything he had ever felt on the planet. He placed one foot out and the foot curled around in sun-kissed mud. From the sound of chatter he looked up, then squinted. There was humans dancing around, no... Not humans. Almost-humans-humans. They were human in every aspect, but the feel in the air clung around them.

He looked back at his box, patting it on this side. Where had it wound him up this time? It just hummed in response. _Well I'm going to go get changed, and then I'll have a look around. _He thought, the smell of his own blood clogging his nose.

When he came out again, clad in leather, he noticed something. A man, but not a man. A monster. The thing-in-the-air was clung around him more then the others, and he held a golden light. He walked through the edge of the meadow, sniffed, and then looked up at the Doctor. The Doctor just stood there as the thing approached him. It looked so out of place in the meadow. Every flower, blade of grass, grew stronger and more beautiful but had an ugly gleam that curled in its shadows.

"You... are the owner of this... box?" Barked the monster from a meter away, his tongue curling around his mouth in a smile.

The Doctor nodded, one hand gently draped over the handle. There was something about this creature that screamed unnatural. His eyes were reptilian and gold; his skin was chapped and bumpy. The thing looked like a crocodile had eaten him but spitted him out while reminiscences of the beast clung on his entire self. He curled his nose at the thing.

"Where did you come from?" Asked Rumpelstiltskin in curiosity.

The Doctor blinked at his question, taken back by it. Where did he come from? For the first time in three days the Doctor realized he had fallen out of the universe to some place distant. It wasn't a parallel world, the Doctor would've known if it was. It was something entirely knew. At those words he sprung into action, moving in a way all to familiar. "What is this place?"

The beast grinned, "My kingdom... the Enchanted Forest, all the same really. But shouldn't I be asking the questions?"

The Doctor laughed at the beast like he was scolding a child, "oh no that not how I work." And he probed at the mud with his sonic. "What planet is this?"

Rumpelstiltskin just looked at him. His mouth was clamped shut.

The Doctor looked up at him after a few moments and rolled his eyes, "well!"

"This is no planet, this is a realm." Rumpelstiltskin responded in a whisper.

The Doctor's eyes gleamed with fear and he stepped face, shoe being clenched in mud. "Realms don't exist. They are completely out of the universe..." The Doctor whispered, wishing the rift hadn't opened up. That he had remained where he was, or flew away somewhere different. Just that he hadn't fell through.

"How is this... bad?" Asked the beast, giggling. He was unaware of the Doctor's panic.

"Extremelly. I'll probably never be able to get back... oh this is fantastic really, rather fantastic in the worst sort of way," he began to moan. He was somewhere he didn't belong.

"Lucky for you I know about magic," chimed Rumpelstiltskin, gleaming dispite the Doctor's sadness.

"What was your name again?" Asked the Doctor, saving himself from complete death.

"Rumpelstiltskin," the beast smiled while his golden eyes zoomed over the Doctor in a hungry sort of way.

He looked at him in shock, two bad things in one day... no. He had heard of Rumpelstiltskin in the fairy tale books. But he never expected him to be, well, a real thing. "I hope you can get me out of here," he said with a moan.

"Oh of course I can, but remember! All magic... comes with a price!" He squealed with pleasure. The Doctor's response was a moan of what was to come.


	2. Chapter 2

They had been walking for several days. No, not walking, riding in a carriage. The TARDIS was worthless in the realm, it couldn't move anywhere. Until the Doctor and Rumpelstiltskin figured a way out then it was stuck. So the Doctor had hidden it away. He hated to leave his precious love but then again, without the Spinner, she'd be bored and rot. So with a pat on her outer wood he set off.

"What is a realm anyway?" Asked Rumpeltstiltskin through blood tainted teeth and golden eyes. He broke the silence.

The Doctor sighed, hand resting along the polished wood. "Completely out of the universe. Not parallel or bubble, just a floating hunk out of the walls of reality. This is where," he curled his hands angrily, "magic may truly flow and take what ever it likes. Not in the universe, has no hold on it. Its like a..." he tried to find the words, "a prison cell for magic. Overruns the TARDIS's power and creates its own. That's the reason I can't leave. A bird with no air, so I can't fly."

Rumpelstiltskin did not look at him the entire time he spoke. "So to leave..."

"Magic must be eliminated within a 14 mile radius." Explained the Doctor.

A snort was the Spinner's response. "Completely?" He asked. There was a tapping that echoed throughout the carriage. Four clicks as his finger's drummed along the wood.

The Doctor cringed at the sound, but didn't ask him to stop. "No, but pretty much." He gritted his teeth, "magic in its truest form... I never thought I'd be able to taste it... how revolting."

Rumpelstiltskin gave a small laugh, "revolting it is. Makes people sick, power hungry. Every emotion a human can feel."

"Where are we going anyway?" Asked the Doctor, itching to walk around.

The Spinner's eyes glowed with an odd light that was almost sad and angry at the same time. "An old friend," was his only response. They didn't talk for the rest of the journey.

They had approached a dark castle and even though Rumpelstiltskin said it was okay to approach it The Doctor had some worries. "Whose house is this?" He asked, one eye always on the building.

"The Queen's," he said sharply, though avoiding eye contact. "If you'd like to stay," he gestured towards the carriage while tapping a foot, "then I wouldn't mind."

"No, no," said the Doctor as he shook his head. "I'll come in with you." And for the first time he noticed what was pulling the carriage. It was a horse, well, close to one. It was the black skeleton of one. He raised a questioning eyebrow at Rumpelstiltskin who dismissed it with a flick of a hand.

"Then lets go," said the Spinner as he began up the steep slope towards the entrance.

By the time they had gotten to the top there was a lady garbed in black waiting for them. "Rumpel," she spoke with mock kindness, "what do I owe this visit to?"

Rumpelstiltskin placed a hand along the marbled railing. He recoiled in her presence. The Doctor sensed dislike between the two and watched how they reacted to each other.

"Assistance," the Spinner hissed through clenched teeth.

"What kind of Rumpel," she curled up her nose as her eyes passed over the Doctor. "And how is this?"

"The case you will be helping me with," he responded without further explaining. Something told the Doctor that the Spinner didn't want to fully explain to the lady in black.

Her fingers traced the smooth marbled patterns, "and what do I get out of this?"

His face twitched, mouth slightly gaped and eyes wild. "A new spell," he hissed with a barley auditable tone.

"And the magnituide?" She countered, a small smile forming on her face.

"Larger then you could ever imagine," he nearly growled. "Now help me and you'll get it."

She considered the bargain for a moment then, with a widened smile, spoke a single word. "Deal."


End file.
